Ski boot

ABSTRACT

A ski boot formed of a body, a leg located above the body and so mounted to the body as to permit adjustment of the lateral inclination of the leg with respect to the body, and an adjusting mechanism mounted to the body and the leg and located exteriorly of the body and the leg for effecting the adjustment of the lateral inclination of the leg with respect to the body.

United States Patent 1 Tessaro SKI BOOT [76] Inventor: Vanio Tessaro, Caerano S. Marco,

Treviso, Italy [22] Filed: Feb. 4, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 223,655

52 us. Cl. 36/25 AL 511 im. CI A43b 58 Field of Search 36/25 R, 2.5 AL

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,303,584 2/]967 Werner et al. 36/2.5 AL

[ June 19, 1973 Primary Examiner-Patrick D. Lawson Attorney- D. Paul Weaver and Albert Gorden [57] ABSTRACT A ski boot formed of a body, a leg located above the body and so mounted to the body as to permit adjustment of the lateral inclination of the leg with respect to the body, and an adjusting mechanism mounted to the body and the leg and located exteriorly of the body and i the leg for effecting the adjustment of the lateral inclination of the leg with respect to the body.

6 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures Ski BOOT The present invention relates to a ski boot and, in particular, to a boot which adapts itself exactly to the leg of the skier whatever his lateral inclination.

It is well known that a mans leg is not perfectly vertical when his foot rests on a horizontal plane, but in fact is slightly inclined outwards. Normally this inclination is contained within very small limits and in the erect position with the ankles touching, the knees are in contact internally. However, it is not rare to find people in whom the inclination of the leg to the horizontal is more evident and this manifests itself either by a greater distance between the knees (varism) or vice versa (valgism).

Generally the weight of the skier does not bear uniformly on the whole of the sole of the boot, but is more accentuated on one side or the other. In particular, in the case of varism the greater pressure on the external edge of the boot sole is transmitted to the ski, causing the well known edging; i.e., a greater pressure on the external edge of the ski than on the internal edge. This leads to an irregular run, greater difficulty in maintaining equilibrium, greaterdifficulty in maneuvering, and hence a greater risk to the skier.

For eliminating these disadvantages, boots have been proposed with their leg inclined laterally to the horizontal plane, but this obviously leads to a standardization of the remedy which does not resolve the problem except in some of the most frequent cases, and is not suitable for compensating every type of malformation.

It has also been proposed that false soles should be applied to the interior of the boots or that the sole should be raised into a horizontal position independent of the inclination of the leg, but obviously these solutions require individual adjustment which, in series production, is unacceptable.

In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 3,305,584 discloses an arrangement in which the leg and the rigid body of the boot constitute two distinct upper elements which are coupled together and provided with means for adjusting their mutual lateral inclination. However, this adjusting means is located in part interiorly of the boot and thus cannot be operated while the boot is being worn and gives some degree of discomfort to the wearer. Moreover, this adjusting means provides for a finite number of adjustments and thus is limited as to the adjustments that can be made.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention provides a ski boot in which the aforementioned disadvantages are absent and in which the leg of the boot is perfectly adjustable to the lateral inclination of the leg of the skier while the boot is on the foot of the skier. This is accomplished by providing an adjusting device that is located exteriorly of the boot.

This invention, as contrasted with the arrangement of U.S. Pat. No. 3,305,584, also enables an infinite number of increments of the adjustments to take place. This is accomplished by providing an adjusting member in the form of a screw that is rotatablymounted to a plate that is attached to the body and is threadedly engaged into a plate that is attached to the leg.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a back view of a boot according to the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a perspective detailed view of the adjusting device.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT As can be seen from the Figures, the leg 1 and the rigid body 2 of the boot do not form a single piece, but are made in two separate parts and coupled together at the ankle bones so as to permit limited bending of the leg in the front-back longitudinal plane of the boot. In particular, the boot leg 1 and the rigid body 2 are attached together directly by a conventional coupling member 3 and a pin (not shown) at the internal ankle bone. The coupling member 3 and the pin are so connected to the leg 1 and the body 2 as to permit relative movement between the leg and the body about the axis of the pin, this axis extending widthwise of the boot. At the external ankle bone, the leg 1 and the body 2 are attached to each other by means of a screw adjustment device. This comprises a lower plate 4 and an upper plate 5 attached respectively to the body 2 and the leg 1 of the boot and coupled to each. other by a screw 6 running parallel to the surface of the boot exteriorly of the boot. In the present embodiment, the screw 6 is attached stably and rotatably to a support 7 on the lower plate 4 that projects exteriorly of the lower plate 4, and the screw 6 .is threaded into a threaded bush on the upper plate 5 that projects exteriorly of the upper plate The screw 6 is provided on its bottom with a knurled knob 9 and further provided with engaging notches 10 in order to allow the adjustment operation by suitable keys.

In order to effect the lateral inclination of the boot leg 1 with respect to the resting plane of the body 2, it is sufficient to act on the knurled knob 9 by turning it in one or other direction, thereby causing a continuous adjustment that provides infinite increments of adjustment. For example, a rotation to the right causes the screw 6 to screw onto the bush 8, causing the boot leg to incline outwards.

Obviously by turning the screw 6 to the left the boot leg 1 undergoes the opposite effect.

The plate 4 is further coupled to the body 2 about a horizontal pin aligned with the pin of the coupling member 3 and consequently for any lateral inclination of the boot leg 1 the coupling member 3 and the plate 4 relative to forward bending always remain in axis, so that said lateral adjustment neither alters nor hinders the normal movements of the skier.

I claim: l

l. A ski boot comprising: a body; a leg located above the body; adjusting means mounting the leg to the body so as to permit the adjustment of the lateral inclination of the leg with respect to the body; said adjusting means mounted to the body and the leg located in its entirety exteriorly of the inner surface of the body and the leg for effecting said adjustment; said adjusting means including mechanical means for drawing a portion of the leg and a portion of the body in a direction towards one another and away from each other.

2. A boot according to claim 1 further comprising: means so constructing the adjusting means as to permit infinite increments of said adjustment.

3. The boot according to claim 1 further comprising: a first plate attached to the body; and a second plate attached to the leg; and wherein said mechanical means comprises: an adjusting member so engaged to the plates as to effect movement of the plates towards and away from each other.

4. A boot according to claim 3 wherein said adjusting member comprises: a screw that is rotatably mounted to one of said plates and is threadedly engaged in the other of said plates.

5. A boot according to claim 4 wherein the screw is I as to permit relative movement between the body and the leg about said axis; wherein said plates and adjusting means are located on the exterior side of the boot; and further comprising: a second pin, coaxial with said first pin, coupling said first plate to the body to thereby contribute to said relative movement about said axis.

32 33 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3, 733 Dated June 19, 1973 lnventofls) Vanio Tessaro It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

i The patent fails to show that the patentee is entitled to the priority of Italian patent application No. 84-102-A/7l, filed February 6, 1971.

Signed and sealed this 1st day of January 197A.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.ELET0EEE,JE. RENE D. TEGTMEYER a Attesting Officer Acting Commissioner of Patents 

1. A ski boot comprising: a body; a leg located above the body; adjusting means mounting the leg to the body so as to permit the adjustment of the lateral inclination of the leg with respect to the body; said adjusting means mounted to the body and the leg located in its entirety exteriorly of the inner surface of the body and the leg for effecting said adjustment; said adjusting means including mechanical means for drawing a portion of the leg and a portion of the body in a direction towards one another and away from each other.
 2. A boot according to claim 1 further comprising: means so constructing the adjusting means as to permit infinite increments of said adjustment.
 3. The boot according to claim 1 further comprising: a first plate attached to the body; and a second plate attached to the leg; and wherein said mechanical means comprises: an adjusting member so engaged to the plates as to effect movement of the plates towards and away from each other.
 4. A boot according to claim 3 wherein said adjusting member comprises: a screw that is rotatably mounted to one of said plates and is threadedly engaged in the other of said plates.
 5. A boot according to claim 4 wherein the screw is rotatably mounted to said first plate and is threadedly engaged in said second plate.
 6. A boot according to claim 3 further comprising: a coupling member and a first pin located in the interior side of the boot, said first pin lying on an axis that extends widthwise of the boot, said coupling member and said first pIn being so connected to the body and the leg as to permit relative movement between the body and the leg about said axis; wherein said plates and adjusting means are located on the exterior side of the boot; and further comprising: a second pin, coaxial with said first pin, coupling said first plate to the body to thereby contribute to said relative movement about said axis. 